Missionaries for the Gospel

Mark 6:30–34 ESV

30 The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. 31 And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. 32 And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves. 33 Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they ran there on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. 34 When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things.

Mark 6:53–56 ESV

53 When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored to the shore. 54 And when they got out of the boat, the people immediately recognized him 55 and ran about the whole region and began to bring the sick people on their beds to wherever they heard he was. 56 And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or countryside, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and implored him that they might touch even the fringe of his garment. And as many as touched it were made well.

The church has one mission - to spread the kingdom of God. Over the last several weeks, we have spent time in Mark’s Gospel examining what it means for us to live in God’s kingdom and take the message of Christ to the world. I hope that it has been clear in this study that all of us, no matter where God has placed us in our vocation or station in life, are called to be ambassadors of God’s kingdom. I hope this final sermon will synthesize some of these themes before we pause studying Mark and move to John’s Gospel.

‌Mark’s Gospel unveils Jesus’ pattern for ministry that the church should use as we continue Jesus' mission. Today’s passage shows us how the disciples are invited into this space with Jesus as they return from their mission of teaching, healing, and casting out demons. It would do us well to take this as a way for each of us to do the work that God has called us to and view it as a mission for God.

1. The mission requires rest and worship. (vs. 30-32)

Following the interlude story of John the Baptist’s death, the disciples return from their mission of spreading the kingdom by preaching, healing, and casting out demons. It seems to have been a successful endeavor. Mark’s referral to them as “apostles” rather than “disciples” emphasizes success. They have participated in Jesus' ministry. They were empowered with the same Spirit to have a foretaste of their mission following Jesus’ death and resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit.

Just as with his ministry, Jesus invites the now apostles to find rest and retreat. This is a pattern that Jesus develops. After intense ministry, he goes away in prayer and rest. The withdrawal into the wilderness is not to hide but to recharge the spiritual batteries so that the apostles and Jesus can continue the mission ahead of them. This is a recapitulation of the exodus and wilderness rest of Moses and Joshua, where the leaders of Israel go off by themselves to spend time with the Lord. It is also a rest that is anticipated by the prophets in Jeremiah 31:2, “Thus says the Lord: “The people who survived the sword found grace in the wilderness; when Israel sought for rest.” It is the place where they will find grace and spiritual nourishment.

‌The work of the kingdom can be tiresome. It can be very easy for us to get caught up in doing for the Lord. Taking moments to spend time with him regularly is when we can be the most prepared to do the work. Having a regular time of worship every day is vital for us to be ready to be on mission for God. Resting in God’s presence and worshiping him privately and corporately is the means of grace God uses to revitalize our spirits.

‌Hebrews 4:10–11 says, “10 for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. 11 Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.” Rest and worship are not optional for us. They are essential for our spiritual well-being. We must take time to draw near to God to find peace in the chaos of life. We must develop a rhythm where we spend that time with the Lord regularly.

2. The mission requires care and compassion. (vs. 33-34)

For Jesus and his disciples, the anticipated rest was not welcomed by the crowds following them. The excitement of Jesus’ ministry caused the people to run ahead to the towns they believed Jesus would go to. Notice that the text says that they ran. They had witnessed the power of Jesus and his disciples. They had gone out to the various towns in Galilee and did the same work and teaching that Jesus had done. The fact that there was such jubilation at the prospect of this miraculous caravan stopping in their proximity shows the power that Jesus and his disciples displayed.

‌However, his heart grew weary when Jesus looked upon the crowds of people. He hurt for them. The crowds were so desperate for some acknowledgment of God’s grace in their lives that they would do anything to get close to Jesus. At this point, they were not looking just for the miraculous. Jesus rightly discerned that what they needed was teaching. They needed to hear the good news of the kingdom. We often chastise the crowds that follow Jesus as just looking for more miracles. (In the coming weeks, we will see that this was also a reaction.) At least here, they were seeking something more substantial. This is why Jesus looks at them compassionately as sheep without a shepherd. This is a chastisement of the leaders of Israel, not the people.

‌Jesus is drawing from Ezekiel 34 and Jeremiah 23:4–5, where the prophet says, “4 I will set shepherds over them who will care for them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall any be missing, declares the Lord. 5‘Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.’” The people were seeking God’s word and his truth. They were hungering for something more and more profound. They received not proper nourishment but sugar and candy from the current spiritual leadership. Their spiritual leadership failed to provide them with what was necessary for spiritual flourishing. Instead, the Pharisees and Sadducees were only focused on their prosperity to the detriment of the people.

The care and compassion that Jesus showed to the crowds exemplify how we are to cultivate a heart of compassion for the world around us. It is so easy for us to respond to the evils of the day with vitriol. We witness how the leaders, whether political, cultural, or spiritual, in our day lead people away from the ways of God. Instead of responding in anger, perhaps it is the church's calling to respond with compassion. Our best witness is hearing where people are and responding in kindness. Jesus knew that what the people needed at that moment was not criticizing them but teaching them the truth of the kingdom with love. In doing so, we must be willing to cross boundaries we set for ourselves - go to places we are not often comfortable with. This is where we must be willing to change. We must be willing to go where the Spirit leads us and look at others with compassion and care for those seeking something more in their lives but using the world rather than Christ to do that.

3. The mission results in faith and healing. (vs. 53-56)

Proper teaching produces right faith. This is something that is ignored by many in the church today. Many have abandoned correct doctrine in favor of feelings and emotions. They say, “Doctrine divides people, but love brings people together.” This is entirely unchristian and unbiblical. If we do not have the correct doctrine, especially regarding the “big stuff” we find in the Nicene and Apostle’s creeds, our “faith” is directed to the wrong place and god. This is why Jesus focuses on teaching as his first act when he declares that the people are without a shepherd. Only when they receive proper teaching can they receive proper faith.

‌After feeding the 5,000, Jesus and his disciples return to Galilee to the town of Gennesaret, a few miles southwest of their home base in Capernaum. When they arrive, the people receive him openly. Word had spread of Jesus’ miraculous power and his teaching. The people recognized him immediately and began bringing all their sick to him. They believed that he could heal them with just a touch of the hem of his cloak, like the woman with the hemorrhage in Chapter 5.

‌At first glance, this all seems like a group of people who are energized and excited. It looks like emotionalism. In a sense, it is. But it is much more than that. Of course, people will be excited about the prospects of healing. Any of us would be. Healing is a sign of the spread of God’s kingdom. People are healed from disease and brokenness. But healing transcends the physical and is a restoration of the whole person. When we seek Jesus, we can have profound healing and transformation in our lives. It is narrow-minded of us to think of healing as just a physical event. We know that not everyone is healed in the way that we wish they were. Some people do not attain complete bodily healing. If it were that easy to have a gift of healing, we would all go into every hospital or assisted living facility and pray for each person to get up and walk out with all strength in mind, body, and spirit. But that does not happen. However, that does not discourage us from praying for healing. God heals us in ways that are not always physical.

‌The point is that even as people reach out in faith to touch Jesus’ robe for healing, we must have a desperate sense for him in all parts of our lives, not just physically. The proper teaching is essential to having the right faith and healing. When we place our faith in our faith, there is no way that any healing can happen. What do I mean by this? Some teach that you will be completely healed if you have the right faith. If, for some reason, you are not entirely healed, it is because you didn’t have enough faith. This reasoning is entirely bogus. Did every person get healed and trust in Jesus? Yes, they did in this account. But there are other places where that did not happen - in Nazareth, for example in Mark 6:5-6. The people were not healed because they had no faith in Jesus. So whether one is healed physically or not, one must have faith in Christ to be healed in the first place.

‌Our mission as the church is to teach proper doctrine so that a healing faith can be present in those who believe and trust in Jesus. Does this mean that if you think that you will be healed? No. But it does mean that even if we are not healed in the way we wish, we have a faith in Jesus that goes beyond physical ailments to the glory of who he is. We place our trust in the one who will bring complete healing when we are raised with an eternal spiritual body. Jesus will ultimately make us all well if we have the faith to reach out to him. The prophet Ezekiel tells us of Jesus’ ministry in Ezekiel 34:16, “I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.” Jesus binds us up and strengthens us. We need to only place our trust in him. It is our call to tell the world of the only one who can genuinely do this for us.

‌God has a mission for all of us. Each one of us is a missionary going into a foreign land. We have lost our sense of that. Too often, we think of the mission field as some faraway place rather than our backyard. Like the disciples who returned to Jesus as apostles, we are sent out when we leave this building. We are going on a mission for God. We are leaving here to spread the good news of the Kingdom to all people. But we must be prepared for that mission. That is why it is so essential for us to be in the presence of God regularly through personal and corporate worship. In this space, we prepare our hearts for the mission that is before us. We must look at the world with compassion. There are so many who are lost and trying to find their place. We don’t beat them over the head. We lovingly invite them into a relationship with Jesus. We used to be in that same place, and we must tell others about Jesus, who brings us in even when we are broken, and our life is a mess. He is there to heal us. We are strengthened by knowing the true gospel. It is the only message that can heal us. All of us must approach Christ with a sense of desperation. Knowing that none of us deserve his mercy and kindness, he offers it to us all. Let us take up the mantle and be apostles, those sent out, in the name of Jesus.